Department for Transport

Transport: Coronavirus

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 28 July (HL6830), whether in their response to this question they will now provide figures for the amount of funding by way of loans or guarantees they have provided under COVID-19 assistance schemes (1) to international airline operators, (2) to international rail operators, and (3) to international shipping operators.

baroness vere of norbiton: Please refer to the previous reply provided on 28 July. Government are unable to publish further details due to the sensitive commercial nature of this information.

USA: Coronavirus

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether thosearriving into England from the United States must self-isolate for14 days upon arrival; and if not, why not.

baroness vere of norbiton: Currently, all arrivals from the US must self-isolate for 14 days on arrival.

Travel: Coronavirus

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what countries and territories are currently under consideration for removal from their list of travel corridor exemptions in England.

baroness vere of norbiton: We keep the list of Travel Corridors under regular review.

Department for Education

Music: Education

the earl of clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to expand the provision of communications technology and broadband so that children will have access to online music education regardless of their socio-economic background or special educational needs.

the earl of clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage all schools, regardless of management or funding, to maintain their commitment to music education (1) through the COVID-19 recovery and catch-up period, and (2) in the long term.

the earl of clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they haveto further update the list of online education resources for home learning published on 7 April to include arts subjects, such as art and design and music.

baroness berridge: The arts form a vital part of children and young people’s education, and access to these important areas should not just be the preserve of the elite. Music is compulsory in all maintained schools from the age of 5 to 14, and academies are also required to provide a broad and balanced curriculum, which Ofsted consider in their inspections.The department has invested nearly £500 million of funding from 2016-20 in a diverse portfolio of music and arts education programmes, and in January, we announced a further £80 million investment in Music Education Hubs for 2020-21 to ensure all children, whatever their background, have access to a high-quality music education.The department is committed to the continuation of high-quality education for all pupils during this difficult time and it is supporting schools and parents through a number of initiatives. On 2 July 2020, the department published detailed guidance to support the full opening of schools from the beginning of the autumn term. The guidance made it clear we expect all schools to teach an ambitious and broad curriculum in all subjects from the start of the autumn term – including art and music. Furthermore, detailed guidance on music provision will be published shortly.Resources may also be found through subject associations and professional bodies, such as BESA’s LendEd website and the EdTech Impact website for example, which include varied resources that teachers already use and rate within the websites. These resources have not been verified by the department’s educational experts, but we are signposting to them because they also cover other areas of the curriculum that are not covered in our list.The department has announced £4.34 million of funding for the Oak National Academy for the 2020-21 academic year to provide online video lessons covering a variety of subjects, including music. The purpose of this funding is to enable Oak to provide support to schools in developing the ability to switch from classroom teaching to remote provision immediately in case of local lockdowns or self-isolation.To help children to access education, including music, at home, we have provided laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children who would otherwise not have access and are preparing for examinations in Year 10, and to those receiving support from a social worker, including pre-school children, and care leavers. As of 30 June, over 200,000 laptops and tablets and over 47,000 4G wireless routers had been delivered or dispatched to local authorities and academy trusts.Where care leavers, children with a social worker at secondary school and children in Year 10, do not have internet connections, we have provided 4G wireless routers to them so that they can learn at home. In partnership with BT, the department has also launched a service to provide children and young people free access to BT Wi-Fi hotspots. 10,000 families are initially able to access the scheme. This offer is currently being piloted and will be rolled out across England in the coming months. We are currently working with BT to expand this offer to allow more children to access the internet through their network of BT Wi-Fi hotspots.We are also working with the major telecommunications companies to improve internet connectivity for disadvantaged and vulnerable families. For families who rely on a mobile internet connection, mobile network operators are working to provide temporary access to free additional data offering them more flexibility to access the resources that they need the most.

Remote Education

lord aberdare: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to simplify tender processes for education establishments to procure cloud-based virtual learning environments.

baroness berridge: The department has published user tested procurement guidance on GOV.UK as well as approved frameworks as part of our Buying for Schools guidance. At present this does not currently provide a recommendation for virtual learning environments, but approved frameworks are regularly reviewed to ensure they meet the current and future buying needs of schools.In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, we are funding support for school to get set up on one of two free-to-use digital education environments: Google’s G Suite for Education or Microsoft’s Office 365 Education.

Children: Social Services

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect that the review of children’s social care, set out in theConservative Party's 2019 General Electionmanifesto, to commence.

baroness berridge: The Care Review is a fundamental part of the government’s manifesto. While work has been delayed due to our immediate response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the review will be launching as soon as possible. The review will be bold, broad, and independently led, taking a fundamental look across children’s social care, with the aim of better supporting, protecting and improving the outcomes of vulnerable children and young people.

Disability and Special Educational Needs

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the review of special educational needs and disability, announced on 6 September 2019, will be published.

baroness berridge: The government remains committed to completing the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) review, taking into consideration the impact of COVID-19 on the SEND system. We will publish the review as soon as it is practicable to do so, working with children, young people, their families and experts across the education, health and care system to deliver our common goal of improving the SEND system.

Foster Care

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they intend to take in response (1) to the report by OFSTED Inspection profiles of the largest private and voluntary providers of children's homes and independent fostering agencies March 2020, published on 23 July,and (2) the reported comment by OFSTED’s director of social care that the domination of the fostering market by a small number of operators is “storing up trouble for the future”.

baroness berridge: The government is clear that the needs of the child are paramount when making decisions about care placements. The child’s safety, the suitability and quality of a child’s placement in care is our absolute priority. As at 31 March 2020, 93% of independent fostering agencies and 80% of all private and voluntary children’s homes were judged good or outstanding by Ofsted. We believe that a mix of provision can provide quality and increase placement options for local authorities. This mix has enabled local authorities to identify much-needed foster homes for children over the past months, providing the flexibility needed to respond to the demands and pressures of the COVID-19 outbreak.The government understands the concerns of the Ofsted Director of Social Care. The annual Ofsted data is a helpful source of insight into the children’s social care market and we continue to monitor it. We have taken action to help local authorities develop strategic approaches to securing enough placements. This includes investing part of our £200 million children’s social care Innovation Programme funding in 3 projects to improve the supply of placements. Additional funding for 2 of these projects was confirmed on 24 April as part of the £12.1 million to support vulnerable children who are most at risk during the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, in September 2019, we funded 7 local authority-led partnerships to test new approaches to commissioning and sufficiency planning in foster care, worth almost £500,000.

Children: Social Services

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government tolist the additional datarequirements on local authorities relating to children’s social care since thestart of the COVID-19 lockdown.

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what information they have collected on the effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on vulnerable children; and how many new referrals have been made to local authority children’s social care services by (1) self-referral, (2) the police, and (3) the NHS, since the start of that lockdown.

baroness berridge: The department has undertaken a survey of pupils, parents and young people (including vulnerable young people) to collect their views and experiences during the COVID-19 outbreak. It has also undertaken a survey of school leaders and teachers about the impact of COVID-19 on children and young people.The department also publishes statistics on attendance in education and early years settings during COVID-19 (https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/2020-week-29). There are also many other publicly available sources that the department makes use of, including a collated research study on children’s and young people’s views from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-research-studies-children-young-peoples-views).Additionally, a new Vulnerable Children and Young People Survey collects fortnightly data from local authorities in England. It includes data on contact with children supported by children’s social care, workforce, cost and system pressures. The new and temporary report includes the number of referrals to children’s social care and referral source. The department is planning to publish the data in due course.The department has been working closely with local authorities to assess the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, setting up dedicated regional teams that are in frequent contact. Bringing together expertise from across the department, these teams monitor the challenges that local authorities are facing, including any increases in demand, and can provide support and guidance where appropriate.Figures on the number of referrals and referral source are published annually in the ‘Characteristics of children in need’ statistical release here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-children-in-need. The latest published data relates to the period up to 31 March 2019.The attached table shows the number of referrals to children’s social care services by referral source from the Vulnerable Children and Young People Survey. 



HL7490_HL7491_table
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Free School Meals

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recommendation in the National Food Strategy Part Onereport, published on 20 July, that free school meals should be extended to all children in families receiving Universal Credit.

baroness berridge: The government will carefully consider the findings of the National Food Strategy Part One report and will be responding fully in due course.Free school meals are an integral part of our provision for families on low incomes and our wider actions to promote social mobility. We are supporting around 1.4 million of the most disadvantaged children through free school meals, saving families around £400 a year. It is right that we are targeting our support towards those families that are most in need of it.

STEM Subjects: Equality

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking, if any, to increase the diversity of students taking STEM subjects, in particular engineering.

baroness berridge: We want all students to see science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) as potential career options, and the government is committed to ensuring that anyone, regardless of their background, has the opportunity to pursue a rewarding career in a STEM occupation. There are a growing number of girls taking STEM subjects at A level and the 2018/19 A Level results showed, for the first time, more girls taking science subjects than boys. Although proportionally fewer pupils from BAME groups take STEM A Levels, they perform well with 67.1% of entrants from BAME groups achieving A*-C in 2018/19. UK domiciled BAME students are also more likely to study STEM subjects in higher education than their white counterparts – 47% of BAME students were accepted to full-time STEM subjects in 2019/20 compared to 42% of white students. However, we recognise there is more we can do, which is why we are building on that progress through the STEM Ambassadors programme, creating a network of Maths Hubs, and funding gender balance programmes in physics and computing to increase STEM take up amongst girls. In 2019/20, 45% of STEM Ambassadors were female and 15% were from BAME groups. This programme helps broaden pupils’ understanding of careers in science and engineering and how they can apply their individual skills and interests to different opportunities. We are also funding the Institute of Physics to deliver the Improving Gender Balance research trial. This randomised control trial will scale up an approach that has shown significant early promise in increasing girls’ uptake of A level physics. Gender balance coaches will support girls’ resilience, tackle subject-specific teaching issues, and address whole school gender stereotyping. The government is backing the New Model in Technology and Engineering (NMiTE) institute which has been established in Herefordshire to provide a world leading institution where students can learn engineering. NMiTE will take its first full cohort of students in 2020 and has a 50:50 gender balance recruitment target. The government is also funding Institutes of Technology (IoTs), which will be the pinnacle of technical training. These unique collaborations between further education colleges, universities and businesses offer higher technical education and training (mainly at Levels 4 and 5) in key sectors such as digital, construction, advanced manufacturing and engineering.

Children: Social Services

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessmentthey have made of thedemand likely to be placed uponchildren’s social care services in the autumn.

baroness berridge: The department has been working closely with local authorities to assess the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, setting up dedicated regional teams that are in frequent contact. Bringing together expertise from across the department, these teams monitor the challenges that local authorities are facing, including any increases in demand, and they can provide support and guidance where appropriate.We are aware that there may be an increase in demand for children’s social care services in autumn. We are monitoring referrals via our regional teams and via a new Vulnerable Children and Young People Survey, which collects data fortnightly from local authorities in England. It includes data on contact with children supported by children’s social care, workforce, cost and system pressures as well as the number of referrals to children’s social care. We are planning to publish the data in due course.The government has provided £3.7 billion of additional funding to support local authorities in meeting COVID-19 related pressures, including in children’s services.We will continue to work closely with local authorities as the outbreak progresses.

Pre-school Education: Coronavirus

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many early years settings are registered in England; and of those, what proportion were open in the week beginning 13 July.

baroness berridge: There are approximately 69,000 Ofsted-registered early years childcare providers and school based early year providers in England. In the week beginning 13 July, it was estimated that 43,000 settings were open based on data supplied by local authorities. This represented 62% of all settings, with 30% closed and the status of 9% unknown. See https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

Pre-school Education: Coronavirus

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to support the re-opening of all registered early years settings in September.

baroness berridge: In order to control the spread of COVID-19, early years providers were initially only open for children of critical workers and vulnerable children.From 1 June, early years providers have been able to welcome back children of all ages and since 20 July, they have been able to return to their normal group sizes. This paves the way for more children to transition back to their early education and support parents to return to work.The department has provided detailed guidance for early years providers to support them to welcome back more children and implement the required protective measures: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures.On 20 July, we announced our commitment to continue paying local authorities for the childcare places they usually fund throughout the autumn term. This means that providers who are caring for fewer children can continue to be funded at the same levels as before the COVID-19 outbreak. Local authorities will also continue to fund providers which have been advised to close, or left with no option to but close, for public health reasons. These measures give another term of secure income to nurseries and childminders who are open for the children who need them.Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, the early years sector has also been able to access a wider package of government support in the form of a business rates holiday, business interruption loans and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. Full details of the support available can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures#funding.

Free School Meals: Voucher Schemes

lord rennard: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the response byBaroness Berridge on 17 June (HL Deb, col 2180), when they intend to respond to the proposal toask supermarkets involved in the free school meals scheme (1) to contribute to the cost of the scheme, and (2) to provide additional benefits to those using the vouchers; and what discussions they have had with supermarket chains about ways to support the poorest families during the COVID-19 pandemic.

baroness berridge: Throughout the duration of the free school meal voucher scheme, we have been working closely with supermarkets. We recently wrote to and met with participating supermarkets to ensure their ongoing support and welcome their efforts to support families across the country. The voucher scheme and the COVID Summer Food Fund will shortly be coming to an end as children return to school in September and school kitchens re-open, providing free meals for those that are eligible.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Change of Use: Coronavirus

baroness gardner of parkes: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they plan to take to bring presently unused office spaces into use to provide housing forthose who are unable to find safe places to live during the COVID-19 pandemic.

baroness gardner of parkes: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for providing access to unused holiday letsaccommodation in Londonto homeless people.

lord greenhalgh: Almost 15,000 vulnerable people have been housed in emergency accommodation, including hotels, since the start of the COVID-19 emergency. This includes people coming in directly from the streets, people previously housed in shared night shelters and people who have become vulnerable to rough sleeping during the pandemic.On 24 June we announced that we are providing local authorities with a further £105 million to enable them to best support those placed into emergency accommodation during the COVID-19 pandemic. This commitment will help to ensure that as few of these people as possible return to the streets.We also recently announced that £160 million of Rough Sleeping Accommodation Programme funding will help ensure that 6,000 new housing units are put into the system, with 3,300 of these becoming available within 2020/21. We expect local authorities and registered providers to bring forward units of accommodation from a variety of sources and this could potentially include repurposing other buildings where appropriate.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Ragwort: Weed Control

lord patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessment they have made of the effectiveness of the Ragwort Control Act 2003 in preventing and controlling the spread of ragwort on (1) privately owned property, and (2) publicly owned land, such as roadside verges.

lord gardiner of kimble: Defra’s injurious weeds policy aims to balance a variety of different interests in the countryside. We have not made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Ragwort Control Act 2003, as this Act amends the Weeds Act 1959 by inserting a provision enabling the Secretary of State to produce statutory guidance in the form of a ‘code of practice’ on how to prevent the spread of ragwort. The Secretary of State published a code of practice in 2004, which aims to define the situations in which there is a likelihood of ragwort spreading to neighbouring land where it will then present an identifiable risk of ingestions by vulnerable animals, and to provide guidance on the most appropriate means of control, taking into account both animal welfare and environmental considerations. This is available on the GOV.UK website. Natural England is the responsible authority for investigating complaints about injurious weeds under the Weeds Act 1959 in England and collects data on injurious weeds complaints to monitor the number of complaints in each season. This data is reviewed annually by Defra and Natural England, and from the 2018 season this data is available on data.gov.uk.

Home Office

DNA: Databases

lord browne of belmont: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many DNA profiles of individuals not convicted of any crime have been added to the National DNA Database since 2015.

baroness williams of trafford: The National DNA Database system does not maintain the conviction (or otherwise) status for retained DNA profiles of individuals.

Money Laundering

lord browne of belmont: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the current steps being taken to tackle money laundering in the UK.

baroness williams of trafford: We have consistently reinforced our ability to crack down on money laundering in the UK and with our operational partners, we continue to bring the full capabilities of law enforcement to bear against serious criminals, corrupt elites, and their assets.In July 2019 we published an ambitious public-private Economic Crime Plan and Asset Recovery Action Plan, for the first time bringing together government, law enforcement and the private sector to deliver a collective response to the threat from economic crime. We are making good progress, in particular on enabling better information sharing to combat economic crime, reforming the Suspicious Activity Reports system and implementing the 5th Money Laundering Directive to bear down on money laundering.The Financial Action Task Force completed a landmark review of the UK’s regime for tackling money laundering and terrorist financing in December 2018, concluding that we have some of the strongest controls in the world.

British Nationality: Assessments

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the (1) target, and (2) anticipated, processing time for those applying for indefinite leave to remain in theUK.

baroness williams of trafford: The normal service standard for applications for Indefinite Leave to Remain applications is six months. Immigrations case-working operations have been impacted by COVID-19 and we have continued to make decisions where we have been able to. The re-opening of case-working offices has commenced, and all teams are committed to decide applications as quickly as possible.Information on processing times for visa applications is published as part of the Migration Transparency data, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-transparency-data.



UKVI - Asylum Q4 2019
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Immigration: EU Nationals

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether people who have been granted pre-settled status can remain in the United Kingdom with this status for five years, or whether they need to apply for settled status as soon as they become eligible; and, if the former, whether it is five years from the date they were granted pre-settled status or from 1 January 2021.

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to inform people with pre-settled status that they must apply for settled status before the end of the five-year period of pre-settled status.

baroness williams of trafford: EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members who have been granted pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme can remain in the UK with this status for five years from the date it is granted.Once they have completed five years’ continuous residence, they can apply for settled status. They can choose when they do this but must do so before their pre-settled status expires, unless there are reasonable grounds for failing to do so.In line with the Statement of Intent published in June 2018, the Home Office has committed to issuing reminders to those people whose pre-settled status is due to expire and who have not yet applied for settled status. As pre-settled status is valid for five years, the earliest any such reminders will be issued is 2023.The Statement of Intent is available at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/718237/EU_Settlement_Scheme_SOI_June_2018.pdf.



EU Settlement Scheme - June 2018
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Immigration controls

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to revise the Immigration Rules by spring 2021; and what opportunities there will be for parliamentary scrutiny of any changes.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government published its response to the Law Commission’s report ‘Simplification of the Immigration Rules’ in March 2020 and set out its proposed plans for simplifying and consolidating the Immigration Rules in line with the Law Commission’s recommendations and contained examples of draft Rules.We are working with the Simplification of the Rules Review Committee, which represents a number of different stakeholders, to ensure we take into account a range of different views.Parliament will be able to scrutinise any statement of changes to the Immigration Rules under the normal process in due course.

British Nationality: Assessments

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on the process for applying for indefinite leave to remain in the UK; and what plans they have, if any, to ensure that the process for applying for such leave is adapted to reflect any such disruption.

baroness williams of trafford: The Home Office is committed to ensuring that all applications are considered without unnecessary delay. Immigration case-working operations have been impacted by COVID-19, with most locations going into lockdown at the end of March, although we have continued to make decisions where we have been able to.As UK Visas and Immigration has now reopened the majority of its Visa Application Centres both in the UK and overseas, we are working closely with our partners to maximise the available capacity to service applicants in line with social distancing rules in each location.The Home Office has put in place a range of measures to support those affected by the covid-19 outbreak to ensure people are not unduly affected by circumstances beyond their control.

Gurpal Virdi

lord singh of wimbledon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to conduct an independent investigation into racism experienced by former Metropolitan Police officer Gurpal Virdi.

lord singh of wimbledon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they undertook a formal investigation into the conduct of those implicated in racism against former Metropolitan Police officer Gurpal Virdi; and if not, why not.

baroness williams of trafford: Investigations into the conduct of police officers are the responsibility of the professional standards departments of police forces and, where appropriate, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). Such decision-making is independent of government. Complaints received from Mr Virdi were assessed by the IOPC as suitable for local investigation by the Metropolitan Police Service.

Immigration: EU Nationals

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government in what circumstances a person who possesses pre-settled status who re-applies for settled status at the end of their period of pre-settled status can be granted a further period of pre-settled status.

baroness williams of trafford: EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members who have been granted pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme can remain in the UK with this status for five years from the date it is granted. They can apply for settled status as soon as they have completed five years’ continuous residence in the UK, or earlier if they qualify under one of the routes to settled status which requires a continuous qualifying period of residence of less than five years.Where an applicant with pre-settled status has applied for settled status but has not yet completed the required continuous qualifying period of residence to be eligible for settled status, they will be considered for a further grant of pre-settled status, which will enable them to complete the period of residence necessary to be eligible for settled status.

Entry Clearances: Israel

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Williams of Trafford on 30 June (HL5815), whether (1) Arab, and (2) Jewish, citizens of Israel are treated in the same way when visiting the UK.

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Williams of Trafford on 30 June (HL5815), whether citizens of Israel living in the occupied territories of Palestine receive the same treatment on entry to the UK as those who live in Israel.

baroness williams of trafford: Citizens of Israel require leave to enter the UK and are subject to the requirements of the Immigration Rules. When making an application for entry clearance overseas, or for entry at the border, all Israeli citizens are considered individually under the rules and no distinction is made on the basis of their place of residence.Citizens of Israel holding a national passport do not require a visa to visit the UK. All visitors to the UK are assessed against a set of suitability and eligibility criteria, under the Immigration Rules. The rules apply to all visitors, whether they are applying for a visa in advance of travel or are applying for entry at the UK border.

Honour Based Violence

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Williams of Trafford on 21 July (HL6592), how many cases of honour based abuse were reported in (1) 2019, and (2) 2020.

baroness williams of trafford: So-called honour-based abuse is unacceptable and the Government is committed to tackling it, through, for example, part-funding the national “honour”-based abuse helpline and working closely with the police and charities.Statistics on Honour based Abuse have been collected by the Home Office from police forces in England and Wales since April 2019. The data for 2019-20 is expected to be published as official statistics by autumn 2020.

Refugees

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they willextend the Mandate Refugee Resettlement Scheme to include having siblings in the UK as a key factor for resettlement in cases where separation has occurred because of persecution caused by religion or belief; and if not, why not.

baroness williams of trafford: The UK has a proud history of providing refuge to those seeking sanctuary. There is already provision for wider family members (including adult siblings) to be considered for resettlement to the UK under the Mandate scheme, where there are exceptional circumstances.This applies in all cases, including where UNHCR identifies that persecution because of religion or belief is a contributing factor in their protection needs.

Police and Crime Commissioners

lord wasserman: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will invite the public to submit evidence to their Review of Police and Crime Commissioners; and, if so, what will be the deadline for submissions.

lord wasserman: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to invite (1) the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, (2) the National Police Chiefs Council, (3) the College of Policing, and (4) Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, to submit evidence to their Review of Police and Crime Commissioners.

lord wasserman: To ask Her Majesty's Government who will lead their Review of Police and Crime Commissioners.

lord wasserman: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to hire independent consultants to assist with their Review of Police and Crime Commissioners.

baroness williams of trafford: This review delivers on the Government’s manifesto commitment to strengthen and expand the role of PCCs. It will also ensure voters can hold PCCs accountable for performance – giving the public a stronger voice in matters of crime and justice.The review will take place in two parts – the first part, to be conducted over the summer, will focus on raising standards and improving accountability.Part one of the review will be internal and is being led by the Home Office’s Director of Policing as the Senior Responsible Officer, reporting to Ministers. It will not invite public evidence at this stage, but through its research the review team will seek a range of views on the model, including from the public and victims’ groups.

Cabinet Office

Strokes: Death

baroness altmann: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people died from a stroke in each of the last ten years; and of those, how many were aged (a) 60–69, (b) 70–79, (c) 80–89, and (d) 90–99.

lord true: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.Dear Baroness Altmann,As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people died from a stroke in each of the last ten years; and of those, how many were aged (a) 60–69, (b) 70–79, (c) 80–89, and (d) 90–99 (HL5630).The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is responsible for publishing mortality statistics for deaths registered in England and Wales. The most recent annual figures published are for deaths registered in 2019[1]. However, we do publish provisional weekly deaths registrations, which are currently published for deaths registered up to 17 July 2020[2]. National Records Scotland (NRS) and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) are responsible for publishing the number of deaths registered in Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively.Cause of death is defined using the International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th edition (ICD-10). Deaths caused by stroke are identified by the ICD-10 codes I60-I69 .Table 1 contains the number of deaths involving stroke occurring in England and Wales in the years 2009-2019. This data is not yet available for 2020. The finalised annual death registrations for 2020 will be published in summer 2021.Yours sincerely,Professor Sir Ian DiamondTable 1: Number of deaths occuring where the underlying cause was stroke by age group, 2009 to 2019, England and Wales[3][4][5][6]YearAgeUnder 5960-6970-7980-8990-99100 +20091,7992,3076,42614,3516,43426320101,8332,3276,20913,5266,63229720111,7192,2135,79412,1986,52826320121,6762,2185,56512,1626,79430620131,7252,0835,47811,5626,69225220141,7522,1585,49311,5156,62428120151,6942,2815,67911,6956,98932120161,6972,2175,56911,0376,34728020171,5842,0825,17810,4486,19226320181,6742,1475,39910,6196,16522320191,5692,0115,2479,8745,793231Source: Office for National Statistics[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/datasets/deathsregisteredinenglandandwalesseriesdrreferencetables[2]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/deathsregisteredweeklyinenglandandwalesprovisional/weekending17july2020[3]Figures based on occurrence (death-date)[4]Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents.[5]Stroke is the underlying cause of death and was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes I60 to I64.[6]For information on how deaths are registered and mortality statistics are produced please see the Quality and methodology section

Boundary Commissions

lord grocott: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total cost of the work of the four Parliamentary Boundary Commissions, from the passage of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 to the publication of their reports of September 2018.

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the cost of the Boundary Commission reviews of the boundaries of UK parliamentary constituencies since 2011.

lord true: Figures for expenditure over each financial year are published by the Boundary Commissions for England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland as part of their annual reports. These are available online.

Ministerial Policy Advisers

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to use their powers under section 2(3) of the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 to extend reporting requirements to Special Advisors.

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to adopt the recommendation in the report by the Group of States against Corruption,Fifth evaluation round - evaluation report - United Kingdom, published on the 17 May 2018, that the scope of the registry of consultant lobbyists be extended to include (1) third parties operating with in-house lobbyists, and (2) the lobbying of specialist advisors and senior civil servants involved in policy making.

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to begin post-legislative scrutiny of Part 1 of the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014.

lord true: As the Minister for the Constitution and Devolution set out in a letter to the Executive Secretary of the Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO) Secretariat, the Government will commence post-legislative scrutiny of Part 1 of the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 Act (the Act) this year.The letter is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/903767/Letter_of_24_July_from_Chloe_Smith_to_Gianluca_Esposito.pdf

House of Lords: Location

lord young of cookham: To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the answer from Lord True to Lord Norton of Louth on 14 July (HL Deb, col 1546), when the information referred to will be provided toLord Young of Cookham andLord Norton of Louth.

lord true: Further to the question posed during the debate on 14 July, a letter was sent on 21 July.

Musicians: British Nationals Abroad

the earl of clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that a future agreement with the EU on mode 4 (temporary entry for business purposes) is extended under a free trade agreement to enable touring musicians, their crew, technical staff and entourage to travel between the UK and the EU for short periods of time.

lord true: I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given to HL5418 on 22 June 2020.

Ministers: Correspondence

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures are in place to ensure that ministerial replies, both oral and written, are fact checked to ensure accuracy.

lord true: The Government always strives to give accurate and timely responses to both oral and written questions, with guidance on both set out in its Guide to Parliamentary Work.

Ministers: Vetting

lord strasburger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the positive vetting procedures for ministers and special advisers; and whether any such plans will include a review of the impact of attending events abroad where foreign intelligence agents were also in attendance.

lord true: In line with long-standing practice, Her Majesty's ministers are not subject to security vetting. Advice and support is available to ministers on relevant security matters, including when attending events.All civil servants, including special advisers, are subject to vetting as appropriate. The UK’s vetting regime is undergoing review by the Cabinet Office, which of course includes consideration of the threat posed by foreign intelligence activity.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Wendover

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority Annual Report on Major Projects 2019–20, published on 9 July, which categorised the HS2 projectas a red risk, what recent assessment they have made of (1) the construction, and (2) the whole life costs, of the consented HS2 Phase One scheme at Wendover.

lord true: The Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) has not conducted a review of the Wendover area since its dedicated review in 2018. The review in 2018 of the Wendover area was of the process by which HS2 Ltd had considered and rejected the mined tunnel proposal. However, the IPA was not asked to review either the construction costs or the whole life costs, but whether HS2 Ltd had followed a competent process in making its decision. The review concluded that HS2 Ltd had followed a competent process in reaching its decision.

House of Lords: Location

lord norton of louth: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord True on 14 July (HL Deb, cols 1542–6), whether any feasibility study or costings have been undertaken by the Cabinet Office on moving the House of Lords to York; and, if so, which minister authorised the study.

lord true: As part of the strategic review for the Restoration and Renewal Programme, the Government believes the Sponsor Body should consider decant locations outside London, including York. The location of the House is a decision for a sovereign Parliament.

Government Departments: York

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made toward establishing a government hub in York; which minister has overall responsibility for the project; and how they intend to update Parliament on further developments.

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many government hubs they are proposing to establish outside of London and the South East; and when they expect each of these to be fully operational.

lord true: As the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster set out in his Ditchley Speech, the Government is determined to ensure that the Civil Service is better distributed across the country. The Places for Growth Programme is working with departments and public bodies to firm up relocation plans and further details will be announced in due course.The Places for Growth programme is exploring opportunities across the whole of the UK. Lord Agnew is the Cabinet Office Minister of State with direct responsibility for this programme.

UK Trade with EU

lord empey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to discuss the requirement for export declarations on goods moving between Northern Ireland and Great Britain as part of negotiations on the future UK–EU relationship.

lord true: As set out in the Command Paper ‘The UK’s approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol’, we will ensure unfettered access for Northern Ireland goods moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain, and enshrine this in legislation by the end of the year. The document set out our approach, including that we will not require exit summary declarations on those movements.

Subversion: Russia

lord strasburger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Robert Mueller Report On The Investigation Into Russian Interference In The 2016 Presidential Election, published in March 2019, in particular the conclusions on Russian interference; whether they plan to conduct a similar inquiry in relation to the conduct of the EU referendum in 2016; if not, why not; and why they have not yet conducted such an inquiry.

lord strasburger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role of other states in national referendums in the UK in the last 10 years; if they have not made any such assessment, whether they plan to do so; if not, why not; whether they have (1) investigated, and (2) sought evidence on, the incidence of interference in the EU referendum by any hostile state; if not, why not; and what priority they give to any such investigations.

lord true: I refer the noble Lord to the answer given to PQs HL7209 and HL7179 on 3 August 2020.

Treasury

Retail Trade: Taxation

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will take into account the multi-channel nature of retail sales when (1) undertaking their fundamental review of business rates, and (2) considering the introduction of any form of online sales tax.

lord agnew of oulton: On 21 July, HM Treasury published a Call for Evidence for the fundamental review of business rates. The Call for Evidence invites stakeholders to contribute their views on ideas for reform on all elements of the business rates system and on alternative taxes. As set out in the Call for Evidence, the fundamental review will have an interim report in Autumn 2020, ahead of concluding in Spring 2021. The Government will consider all relevant evidence submitted to the review.

Alcoholic Drinks: Import Duties

lord moynihan: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to apply tariffs on imported wines and spirits after the end of the transition period.

lord agnew of oulton: On 19 May, the Secretary of State for International Trade announced the UK Global Tariff[[1]] which will take effect on 1 January 2021. It set out the UK’s Most Favoured Nation (MFN) import tariffs, including for wine and spirits, on GOV.UK. These are the tariffs that will apply to all imports unless there is a preferential trading arrangement in place. Under the UK Global Tariff, import tariffs on wines and spirits will range from 0% to 40%, depending on the type of product. Within the 0-40% range, the average tariff will be around 8% on wine and approximately 1% on spirits. However, where a preferential trading arrangement is in place, for example a Free Trade Agreement, the tariffs will be lower and often 0%. [1] https://www.gov.uk/check-tariffs-1-january-2021

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Data Protection

lord fox: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to amend the data subject rights of UK citizens under the General Data Protection Regulation after the end of the Brexit transition period.

baroness barran: As with all policy areas, the UK will control our own data protection laws and regulations in line with our interests, after the end of the transition period. We want our data protection law to remain fit for purpose, and to support the future objectives of the UK. The UK will continue to operate a high-quality regime that promotes high data protection standards, growth and innovation, and underpins the trustworthy use of data as the UK economy becomes increasingly digital and data-enabled.